Work permits now required for visiting performers in Cayman

Visiting musical acts, artists and entertainers will now be required to have a temporary work permit to perform in the Cayman Islands, Workforce Opportunities and Residency Cayman has said.

The department, in a statement Monday afternoon, said with immediate effect, visiting entertainers will no longer be able perform through the grant of a visitor’s work visa issued by the Customs and Border Control Service.

“In order to facilitate greater scrutiny of those seeking to perform in the Islands, promoters and agents are now required to apply to WORC for a Temporary Work Permit (which includes a valid police clearance certificate) on behalf of performers,” WORC said.

The applications, the department said, will be given priority by WORC but “to avoid any potential problems applications should be submitted at least (14) fourteen days before the intended date of arrival in the Islands”.

“We recognise that those who sponsor or promote visiting artists have become used to obtaining permission for their acts to perform in the Islands quickly in the past under the Visitor’s Work Permit scheme and we are therefore putting in place business processes that will allow decisions for such applications to be done within a suitable timeframe. However, it is essential that applicants ensure that all required information and supporting documentation is provided at time of applying,” WORC’s acting Interim Director Jeremy Scott said in the statement.

Monday’s announcement follows a recent WORC statement which highlighted that a total of 78 work-permit-related offences were recorded between the first and third quarters of 2022, resulting in $273,170 in administrative fines being levied on companies and individuals.

In a separate statement issued Monday, WORC clarified its recent announcement of changes regarding providing a new medical declaration letter for people submitting applications for work permits, permanent residency and Caymanian status, temporary work permits, extensions, business visitors’ visas, and the Special Economic Zone.

New medical declaration required

WORC announced that a new medical declaration cover letter needs to be completed and signed by a medical practitioner along with immigration applications submitted for processing.

The grace period for this new initiative runs until the end of the month, meaning applications received after 1 Dec. 2022 without the medical declaration cover letter will not be accepted for processing.

WORC, in the statement, added that “in the event that adverse results are found after the necessary medical tests, the medical practitioner is required to report those findings to the relevant authorities”.

Only practitioners fully registered as medical doctors from the United Kingdom, United States or Canada will be accepted, not the previous countries originally stated.

“For persons coming from other countries, WORC will offer a temporary condition to allow the person to enter, however this condition requires the medical to be performed and submitted to the Department within seven calendar days of arrival. Non adherence can result in the revocation of the facility,” it said.

Those with questions or queries on the new medical cover letter can review the frequently asked questions by visiting medical.worc.ky.

WORC said the application forms and required supporting documents for temporary work permits can be downloaded from its forms page and payments can be made to the WORC Office at Apollo House West located at 87 Mary Street, George Town or online using the JobsCayman portal.

For questions or queries, WORC’s Customer Care can be contacted on 1-800-534-9672 or 945-9672, or by email at [email protected].